intentionally or knowingly threatening another with imminent bodily injury, including one's spouse

or intentionally or knowingly causing physical contact with another when the person knows or should reasonably believe that the other will regard the contact as offensive or provocative

That basically means that you can commit an assault by either causing bodily injury to another or threatening imminent bodily injury to another. An offense committed in either of those two ways is a class A misdemeanor.

Since you commit an assault be either causing or threatening bodily injury, you have to know how bodily injury is defined; it's not the understanding of what most people have when they refer to bodily injury.

Bodily injury is defined in Section 1.07 of the Texas Penal Code as "physical pain, illness or any impairment of physical condition". So basically if you hit someone and they say it caused them pain, you have committed an assault. The State doesn't have to prove an actual physical injury - such as a bruise, cut, abrasion or broken bone. In fact, assaults can be proved without any actual physical evidence at all.

The last way to commit assault is surprising to most people. You commit an assault if you physically contact someone and you either know or should reasonably believe that the person will regard the contact as offensive or provocative. So if you grab someone in a club or in public, that could be an assault. This type of assault also includes contact where there was no "bodily injury". So if you get in an argument and shove someone out of the way, that could be an assault.

This last type of assault - offensive physical contact - is often referred to as a "Class C" assault. That's because it's a class C misdemeanor. You can't be sentenced to jail for such offenses, but you can be fined.

While assault is generally a misdemeanor, it can be raised to a felony in some situations. For more information on the difference between simple assault and aggravated assault, you can read this post.

If you have been charged with assault in Waco, Texas or the surrounding areas, and need an attorney, contact our office to schedule an appointment.